Ora sono ubriaco d'universo. (Ungaretti)

Some very good reads this morning. I sometimes regret spending too much time with the news. Not today.

Michael Lewis on a new book about Goldman Sachs (h/t Weigel): About the only time in his account when the reader thinks, “Thank God Goldman Sachs exists,” is when the firm sets out, on the down low, to help Muammar Qaddafi with his investments, and winds up losing more than a billion dollars of the monster’s savings.

io9’s reporter is pretty pumped about the large battle that happened in EVE Online recently. (h/t Josh) I honestly don’t know how cool it is that we “roleplay” futures where we’re organized into gangs that accidentally trigger full-scale wars (moreover: note not just the juvenile name of the CFC but how bad the losses were. Get involved with a gang and there’s your “art” of leadership). I put roleplay in quotes because for many MMO gamers, this isn’t roleplay. This is life, building those ships and fighting to protect turf and seizing and protecting virtual assets. Why do we bother with this democracy thing if no one cares?